Banks from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and India risk losing millions of dollars due to their exposure to Finablr Plc, the foreign-exchange operator that’s preparing for potential insolvency, according to people with knowledge of the matter, Bloomberg News reported. Qatar National Bank, Doha Bank, National Bank of Fujairah, Commercial Bank International and Bank of Baroda are still owed about $300 million by Finablr’s parent BRS Ventures, which is owned by Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty, some of the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The loan was used to refinance a bridge loan for the acquisition of Travelex Holdings Ltd. Shetty pledged about 56% of his shares in the London-listed firm as collateral for the loan when he was unable to repay it after Finablr’s initial public offering last May, the people said. Since listing, the shares have plummeted about 93%, giving Finablr a market value of 77 million pounds ($89 million) when it was halted from trading this week. Read more
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